Public Statements

Patrick Murphy Praises Obama's Call To Repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"

Statement

Pennsylvania Congressman Patrick Murphy (D-8th District) issued the following statement tonight following President Barack Obama's call to repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" in his State of the Union address:

"I'm glad that President Obama is calling for Congress to repeal the wrongful policy known as "Don't Ask, Don't Tell', as he did repeatedly on his campaign. It is ridiculous that American taxpayers have spent $1.3 billion to kick brave, talented Americans out of the military simply because of their sexual orientation. In the last year, we've committed more servicemembers to fighting Al Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan. While we increase our forces to fight terrorism, it makes no sense to kick out fighter pilots, medics, and Arabic linguists at the rate of nearly 2 servicemembers a day. It is time to repeal this ridiculous law that hurts our national security and military readiness."

Congressman Patrick Murphy is the first veteran of the Iraq War elected to Congress. A former Captain in the 82nd Airborne division, he was awarded the Bronze Star for service in Iraq. Murphy represents the 8th District of Pennsylvania.